Friends of Steinway hopes to score $9M

The Friends of Steinway Mansion is trying to raise $9 million to purchase the former home of the founder of the legendary piano company.

The Friends of Steinway Mansion, a group of individuals, businesses, government officials and community groups, is trying to raise a total of $9 million in stages to purchase the former home of the founder of the legendary piano company and its grounds in Astoria, Queens, and restore them to their former glory.

"The Steinway Mansion is a monument to Gotham's legendary spirit and to its people," said Bob Singleton, executive director of Friends of Steinway Mansion and the Greater Astoria Historical Society. Located in an industrial area two blocks from the factory where the pianos are still painstakingly crafted, the 6,000-square-foot, 160-year-old stone mansion, with its sweeping main staircase and soaring ceilings, has drawn no serious offers since it hit the market at $3.5 million three years ago. "Many potential buyers who had been intrigued [about] restoring the mansion and living in it changed their minds after driving around the area," said Paul Halvatzis, the Amorelli Realty broker who represents the seller, the executrix of the Steinway Mansion. That is no problem for the Friends of Steinway Mansion members, who don't plan to live in it but propose turning it into a museum and learning center.

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